Meta-EU antitrust crackdown! Tech giant faces investigation over AI features in WhatsApp: Report

Meta-EU antitrust crackdown: US-based technology giant Meta Platforms is set to face an antitrust investigation from the European Union (EU) over certain artificial intelligence (AI) features in WhatsApp, which are allegedly harming competition on the continent, according to a report by the news agency Bloomberg on Thursday, 4 December 2025.

According to the agency report citing people aware of the development, the European Union is preparing to launch an antitrust investigation against Meta Platforms as early as this week.

The regulator will investigate under its traditional antitrust rules to examine any alleged anticompetitive effects resulting from Meta AI integration with the WhatsApp services, as per the news report.

However, the people cited in the report also told the news agency that it is unclear which aspect of the rollout of Meta AI, which started in March 2025, the authorities may be targeting.

According to the agency report, in November, Italian antitrust regulators also broadened their investigation into Meta's use of AI tools in WhatsApp, focusing on its alleged abuse of a dominant market position in AI chatbot services.

EU's crackdown on Big Tech

The European Union has increased its pressure on big tech firms as the regulator seeks to identify potential market dominance or abuse among the companies which hold a major share of the digital ecosystem.

The regulator also launched its Digital Markets Act, which outlines the dos and don'ts for major companies operating in the technological landscape, in efforts to crack down on anti-competitive behaviour, according to the agency report.

The news report also highlighted that, in April 2025, Meta was subject to a $233 million penalty for allegedly breaching the Digital Markets Act. In November 2024, the company was also directed to pay 798 million euros for attaching its Facebook Marketplace service to its social media platform due to allegations of market dominance abuse.

According to the agency report, the European Commission has refused to comment on the development, while Meta has not responded to queries regarding the matter.

Meta's antitrust win

Meta platform won an antitrust case against the US Federal Trade Commission on 18 November 2025, as a federal judge ruled that the social media tech giant does not hold a monopoly in the US market.

“Meta holds no monopoly in the relevant market,” Boasberg wrote, rejecting the FTC claims that Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat operate in a separate space from video-first platforms.

The FTC alleged that Meta was illegally maintaining dominance after its 2012 acquisition of Instagram and later in 2014, when the company acquired WhatsApp.

The court ruled that the FTC’s market definition no longer reflects how Americans use social media. The court reportedly also highlighted that the users now spend only 17% of their time on Facebook viewing content from friends, and just 7% on Instagram.